Door operating mechanism



Nov. 25, 1958 J, F, MGKEE E AL 2,861,800

DOOR OPERATING MECHANISM Filed Sept. 14, 1955 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTORS I J0%n/ 7 ZCK66 m d B wezvimzfffwizze,

Nov. 25, 1958 I Q ET AL 2,861,800

DOOR OPERATING MECHANISM Filed Sept. 14, 1955 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 OOoooooOo IN VEN TOR S Unite atent fihce Patented Nov. 25, 1958 DOOR OPERATING MECHANISM John F. McKee, Aurora, and Melvin E. Hartzler, Downers Grove, Ill., assignors to The McKee Door Company, Aurora, 111., a corporation of Illinois Application September 14, 1955, Serial No. 534,204

Claims. (Cl. 268-59) This invention relates to improvements in the operating mechanism for articulated overhead sliding doors commonly employed in garages, service stations, industrial buildings, warehouses and the like.

The doors may be formed of hinged panels provided with guide rollers and guide tracks; the tracks consisting of vertical and horizontal portions connected through an intermediate curved section.

It is the principal object of the present invention to provide simplified, compact drive means including a carriage telescoped over a tubular horizontal guide member and operatively connected to a prime mover by continuous flexible means looped lengthwise through the guide member in which the carriage is connected to the top of an articulated overhead sliding door and is movable along the guide member to move said door from its vertical closed position to its horizontal open position and vice versa.

It is an additional object to provide lubric glides as the sole interengaging elements between the carriage and tubular member for facilitating frictionless relative movement therebetween.

Another object is to provide novel means for securing the drive means to the carriage; including means for tightening the flexible loop in order to facilitate the installation of the equipment and to eliminate any slack that may develop during usage.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent during the course of the following description.

In the accompanying drawings forming a part of this specification and in which like numerals are employed to designate like parts throughout the same,

Fig. 1 is a vertical sectional view through a garage doorway having a sectional door movingin tapered tracks wherein the door is shown in its down or closed position;

Fig. 2 is a view similar to Fig. 1 illustrating the door in its raised or open position;

Fig. 3 is a vertical side view, with parts broken away and sectioned, of the novel guide member and carriage arrangement;

Fig. 4 is a vertical sectional view taken on the line 44 of Fig. 3; and

Figs. 5, 6, and 7 are fragmentary vertical sectional views taken on the lines 5-5, 66, and "/"7, respectively, of Fig. 3.

A typical arrangement for an overhanging door is illustrated in Figs. 1 and 2 wherein numerals 9, Ill, 11, and 12 designate the various door sections that are hingedly connected together and may receive adjustable roller brackets 13 and a lower corner roller bracket 15 that are adapted to move in a guide track generally designated 15. The guide track consists of a substantially horizontal upper section 1'7, an inclined lower section 18 and a curved section 3.9 joining the two. The adjustable roller brackets properly and accurately space the various door sections from the tracks to give a tight fit of the door against the stops of the door frame.

Suitable electric motor driving means are shown susa... pended from the building structure, as at 21, and may be connected to the door operating mechanism, generally indicated at 22, by means of any suitable sprocket arrangement. The operating mechanism consists of a tubular guide member 23 suspended from the building structure by suitable brackets carried at its opposite ends, a carriage 24 telescoped over the guide member and con nected to a continuous link type chain 35 that is looped through the tubular member and rides on suitable sprockets 25 carried at the opposite ends of the tubular member, and a driving link 26 pivotally connected between the carriage 24 and the upper door section 12.

The arrangement is such that the carriage, under the control of the chain and the electric drive motor 21, is reciprocated along the tubular guide member 23 to raise the door from its closed position as shown in Fig. l to its open position as shown in Fig. 2 and vice versa.

Suitable counterbalancing facilities for compensating for the weight of the door are customarily provided, and while none are illustrated in the accompanying drawings, it is contemplated that any conventional type may be employed.

The present invention is concerned with the mounting arrangement of the carriage on the guide member and the means for securing the carriage to its flexible driving means, and in this connection, reference should be had to Figs. 3 to 7 of the drawings. The tubular guide member 23 is preferably circular in cross section and supports the carriage for relatively frictionless sliding engagement. The carriage is preferably of three-piece construction and consists of a top semicircular arcuate plate 28 and depending side plates 29 having integral offset portions 30 secured to the lower edges of the top plate 28 by suitable bolts 31. Each of these plates is formed with a pair of longitudinally spaced rectangular openings for the reception of wedging elements 32 that are shaped to provide suitable retaining pockets for lubric glides 33. The glides are preferably block shaped and in the preferred form of the invention are made of nylon though any other suitable lubric material may be employed. The apertures in the plates are arranged to exert lateral forces on the wedging elements which in turn grasp the block shaped glides to hold them firmly in place.

It will be noted that this arrangement provides a simplified and compact mounting for a carriage that exhibits a high degree of rigidity and stability while simultaneously accommodating substantially frictionless sliding movement of the carriage relative to its support.

As a further feature the carriage is adapted for connection to a continuous link type chain 35 that is looped lengthwise through the tubular member 23. The chain 35 is conventional and may correspond to the well-known bicycle type chain. This arrangement is facilitated. by providing a filler 36 disposed within the tubular guide member and extending substantially the entire length thereof. The filler is preferably a wooden board of suitable size and shape and it not only provides a desirable guiding and supporting means for the chain, but also eliminates undesirable noises that would otherwise result. The side plates 29 of the carriage are formed with spaced apart depending flanges 38 that receive therebetween an irregularly shaped hook 39 that is adapted for connection to the driving link 26, the opposite end of which is connected to the top section of the door. The hook is secured between the plate portions 38 by suitable nut and bolt assemblies 40, 41, and 42 and for this purpose is integral with an oppositely extending mounting tongue portion 43. The tongue 43 is formed with a pair of holes for receiving a locking bolt 44 and slack adjusting bolt 45. An additional pair of nut and bolt assemblies 47 and 48 span the spaced plate portions 38 for receiving rotatable sleeves 49, as best shown in Fig. 7, that serve as guide rollers for the chain 35.

As shown in Fig. 3, the exposed portion of the chain passes between the tubular guide element and the rollers 49. The facilities for locking the chain to the carriage are best shown in Fig. 6 and include a rectangular loop 50 that telescopes over the links of the chain and is provided with a tapped opening 51 on its bottom edge for threaded engagement with the locking bolt 44. Thus, by rotating the locking bolt relative to the frame 50, the narrowed inner end 52 of the bolt may be advanced across the opening in the rectangular frame 50 until it projects within one of the chain links for locking engagement therewith. Relative rotation in an opposite direction retracts the bolt and releases this locking action.

It will be noted that in addition to this locking function,

the locking bolt is also capable of effecting limited adustments in the tightness of the chain and for this purpose it is fixedly and adjustably connected to the tongue 43 which is immovably secured to the carriage. The use of an additional nut 53 permits such adjustment. A reliable nonslipping locking arrangement is quite important in the driving system of a door operator in order to insure tight closure of the door and for purposes of providing a smooth over-all operating arrangement. Similarly, it is convenient to employ a chain having a limited degree of slack in order to facilitate the installatron and assembly of the device, but for purposes of operation, it is desirable to eliminate this initial slack. As previously noted, the locking bolt assembly accommodates a certain amount of adjustment. However, it is most convenient to employ for this purpose a separate slack adjusting bolt as shown in Fig. 5. This bolt includes an integral rectangular frame 55 that telescopes over the links of the chain. The bolt 45 is secured to the tongue portion 43 by a nut 56 for relative vertical ad ustment and by this means draws the chain downwardly between the bolt assemblies 40 and 48 to take up any undesired slack.

The door operating mechanism including the novel carnage and chain attachment means operates in the usual manner. It will be noted that during this operation the carriage is snugly seated on the tubular member 23 "and glides back and forth thereon with but a minimum of friction. The arrangement is unusually safe and quiet 1n operation since substantially one half of the continuous chain driving means is encased within the tubular memher at all times. In addition a secure driving connection that eliminates all undesired slack is provided by the present arrangement and this renders it immediately responsive to actuation in either direction and reliable in operation. This slack adjustment oifers the additional advantage of simplifying the installation of a door operating mechanism.

It should be understood that the description of the preferred form of the invention is for the purpose of complying with Section 112, Title 35, of the U. S. Code.

We claim:

1. In a door operating mechanism for an overhead sliding articulated door, said mechanism including a horizontal guide member, a carriage movable along said member, reversible drive means including a continuous link-type chain for attachment to said carriage for moving said carriage in either direction on said member, linkage means for connecting said carriage to a sliding articulated door, and a prime mover for said drive means; attachment means for said chain carried by said carriage and comprising a frame member with a central opening telescoped over one run only of said chain and a locking rod rigidly and adjustably secured to said frame member for movement across said opening to extend at least partially between two adjacent links of said chain, said locking rod being attached to said carriage for locking said chain against movement relative to said carriage.

2. In a door operating mechanism for an overhead sliding articulated door, said mechanism including a horizontal guide member, a carriage movable along said member, reversible drive means including a continuous link-type chain for attachment to said carriage for moving said carriage in either direction on said member, linkage means for connecting said carriage to a sliding articulated door, and a prime mover for said drive means; attach ment means for said chain carried by said carriage and comprising a pair of guide elements spaced apart along said carriage, a frame member with a central opening disposed between said guide elements and telescoped over one run only of said chain and a locking rod rigidly and adjustably secured to said frame member for movement across said opening to extend at least partially between two adjacent links of said chain, said locking rod being attached to said carriage for locking said chain against movement relative to said carriage.

3. In a door operating mechanism for an overhead sliding articulated door, said mechanism including a horizontal guide member, a carriage movable along said member, reversible drive means including a continuous link-type chain for attachment to said carriage for moving said carriage in either direction on said member, linkage means for connecting said carriage to a sliding articulated door, and a prime mover for said drive means; attachment means for said chain carried by said carriage and comprising a pair of guide elements lying in a common plane and spaced apart along said carriage, a frame member with a central opening disposed between said guide elements and telescoped over one run only of said chain, said frame member being movable in and out in a direction normal to the plane defined by said guide elements for adjusting the tightness of said chain, and a locking rod rigidly and adjustably secured to said frame member for movement relative thereto and across said opening to extend at least partially between two adjacent links of said chain, said locking rod being attached to said carriage for locking said chain against movement relative to said carriage.

4. In a door operating mechanism for an overhead sliding articulated door, said mechanism including a horizontal guide member, a carriage movable along said member, reversible drive means including a continuous link-type chain for attachment to said carriage for moving said carriage in either direction on said member, linkage means for connecting said carriage to a sliding articulated door, and a prime mover for said drive means; attachment means for said chain carried by said carriage and comprising a plurality of guide elements spaced apart along said carriage, adjacent elements of said plurality of elements defining a common plane, a first frame member with a central opening disposed between a pair of adjacent guide elements and telescoped over one run only of said chain, said first frame member being movable in and out in a direction normal to the plane defined by said pair of elements, a locking rod rigidly and adjustably secured to said first frame member for movement across said opening to extend at least partially between two adjacent links of said chain, said locking rod being attached to said carriage for locking said chain against movement relative to said carriage, and a second frame member with a central opening disposed between a difierent pair of adjustable guide elements and telescoped over said run of said chain, said second frame member being rigidly and adjustably secured to said carriage for in and out movement in a direction normal to the plane defined by said different pair of elements for adjusting the tightness of said chain on said drive means.

5. In a door-operating mechanism for an articulated overhead sliding door, a horizontal guide member of cylindrical tubular cross-section, a carriage having a central opening of slightly larger crosssectional size than said guide member telescoped over said member, said carriage .having pockets therein opening towards the top and opposite underneath side surfaces of said guide member, Wedge-shaped Inbric glides in said pockets and flaring towards said guide member, said lubric glides constituting the sole interengaging means between said guide member and said carriage to maintain a stable, spaced apart relatively frictionless sliding relationship therebetween, reversible drive means including elongated flexible means engaged upon coplanar wheel-like members carried at opposite ends of said guide member, said flexible means being looped lengthwise through said guide member With the exposed portion of said flexible means arranged beneath said guide member, linkage means including slack-adjustment facilities connected between said exposed portion and said carriage for moving said carriage in either direction along said member, an elongated filler and guide member of sound-absorbing material dis- 15 posed in said tubular guide member to support and guide the portion of said flexible means therein, a link connecting said carriage to said door, and a prime mover for said drive means.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,070,058 McCloud Feb. 9, 1937 2,084,733 Kahliff June 22, 1937 2,589,479 Curtis Mar. 18, 1952 2,589,480 Curtis Mar. 18, 1952 2,687,297 Miller Aug. 24, 1954 2,695,781 Wark Nov. 30, 1954 

